The subject invention relates generally to a method and apparatus for administering tests and, more particularly, to the development of such tests for, and administration of such tests over, a network.
Tests are often used to evaluate and classify an individual""s skill set, particularly in technical fields, for such purposes as employment, educational level ascertaimnent and professional standard requirements. Contemporary test design and interpretation is considered both an art and a science. A number of companies use agencies that administer multiple choice tests to determine technical proficiency and award professional proficiency certifications, such as the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer and the Certified Novell Engineer.
Culturally and historically, standardized written and oral tests have provided a primary mechanism to judge one individual""s knowledge and skills against another""s. Recently, computers have provided a new medium for testing, and the Internet has expanded the forum for that medium immensely by eliminating geographical barriers facing test candidates and potentially reducing test administration costs for test requesters. Testing over the Internet permits a candidate to be physically located anywhere in the world and, so long as access to the Internet is provided, to take a test administered from a centralized location. The test results can be compiled, returned almost immediately and stored in a database if desired. Additionally, agencies interested in test results can use the same technology to obtain test scores quickly and select individuals that they may be interested in as employees, using the test results as an indicator of proficiency.
Providing a suitable and acceptable suite of tests for the various purposes listed above has proven challenging. In the technical community, clients relying on such test suites have done so on average with some degree of skepticism since the tests are often designed by people having no specific knowledge of the client""s particular needs and the client has no way of altering the test to eliminate such concerns by either adding its own questions or making the test customizable through modularity. In addition, such tests are frequently aimed at gauging quantitative rather than qualitative knowledge. Another problem is that existing Internet testing systems concentrate so much on including specific content that they provide inflexible format and delivery options or relatively high cost tests of poor or ambiguous quality. Furthermore, in the absence of directly proctored test administration, the client has little assurance that steps are being undertaken to deter cheating.
On a test specific level, traditional testing methods frequently incorporate (operate based on) assumptions which lead to fallacious conclusions. For example, computer-graded tests are often comprised of a set of questions which are mathematically unordered and unrelated and delivered all at once to the test candidate. This arrangement does not account for the phenomenon of the xe2x80x9cgood test takerxe2x80x9d who has a good short-term memory, is a good guesser, or is capable of interrelating information provided in otherwise unrelated questions, enabling that person to return to earlier questions in the set and change a prior answer to account for the new found knowledge. In order to properly test knowledge, test questions should be presented in a related, ordered sequence, and that sequence should not be identical for each test candidate.
A separate issue is raised when test responses are timed. On the one hand such timing information can assist test designers in eliminating bad or poorly worded questions and in comparing the knowledge level of test-taking candidates. On the other hand, if tests are administered over the Internet, there is no guarantee that each candidate""s Internet connection will be at the same speed, thereby compromising data derived from response timing.
There exists, therefore, a need for a way to develop and administer tests over networks such as the Internet which overcomes the aforementioned problems.
The invention relates to a method for a test deliverer to develop at least one test examining a test candidate""s level of knowledge of one or more fields and to administer such test(s) over a network on behalf of a client. The method involves receipt by the test deliverer of a request to create a test accompanied by a first set of rules. The test deliverer then develops pools of initial questions and answers and a second set of rules for the test and assembles a test definition from the aggregate pools of questions and answers and the first and second sets of rules. A test instance is generated from the test. Upon receipt of a request from a test candidate to take a test, this test instance is delivered to the test candidate and administered. The test instance is returned to the test deliverer along with the test candidate""s answers and is graded. Grades are typically reported to the test candidate and to the client. The questions included in the test instance are then stored as data along with the answers provided by the test candidate and the known correct answers. This stored data is subjected to periodic statistical analysis, first, to assist in improving the quality of the test instances by eliminating xe2x80x9cbadxe2x80x9d questions and answers from availability for future use and, second, to create predictive psychological and job-related profiles of the test candidate based on comparisons with previous test candidates. The results of these profiles may be transmitted to the client.
The invention also relates to a method for a test deliverer to administer at least one test instance to a test candidate over a computer network by means of at least one content browser wherein both the test deliverer and the test candidate have access to a computer network. The invention further relates to a method for minimizing cheating on test instances administered to test candidate""s over a computer network.
It is a primary objective of this invention to provide a method for creating tests of qualitative knowledge, administering them over a computer network, such as the public Internet, and grading them in a timely, fair, and efficient manner.
An additional objective of this invention is to provide a method for creating reliable, high-quality tests that are based on the application of mathematical principles of set theory and statistical analysis to a pool of possible questions.
A further objective of this invention is to provide a method that tests not only the qualitative knowledge of a test taker in a subject area, but through statistical analysis of the answers given in relationship with the results of other test takers over time, also provides a profile of the test taker with information and predictions regarding personality characteristics, the likelihood of cheating, probability of success in specific job types, and management ability.
It is still another objective of this invention to provide a test that may be administered over a computer network with a greatly reduced likelihood of successful cheating.
It is yet a further objective of this invention to provide a test creation method that is highly flexible, customizable and low cost.
Another objective of this invention is to provide test creation and delivery methods that produce an extremely large number of distinct tests from a relatively small number of questions and related possible answers.